What is CBD oil?
CBD, or cannabidiol, is a chemical compound found in cannabis plants. CBD may help empower the body’s endocannabinoid system to regulate physiological and cognitive functions like appetite, anxiety, mood, pain-sensation, and inflammation.
How are CBD oil and hemp seed oil different?
CBD oil is different than hemp seed oil, which is commonly used as a general wellness supplement for its essential fatty acids, vitamins, and minerals. This kind of hemp oil is made by cold pressing hemp seeds to create a dark colored oil with a nutrient-rich composition. Alternatively, CBD is obtained using various extraction methods, such as CO2 or ethanol extraction, and added into MCT coconut oil to create a CBD tincture with a broader range of potential health benefits.
What are the benefits of CBD oil?
Industrial hemp plants are used to make CBD oil, but people often wonder what CBD is good for? With information from various clinical trials and animal studies, there is evidence to suggest that CBD may help treat symptoms such as:
- Chronic pain
- Nausea
- Migraines
- Appetite
- Seizures
- Psoriasis
- Inflammation
- Insomnia
Of all the potential therapeutic and lifestyle uses for hemp and CBD, the ones we hear the most about are:
- Anxiety – CBD may help people reduce anxiety. This could include social anxiety, generalized anxiety, or panic attacks. Here’s a medically-reviewed article about CBD and anxiety.
- Pain – CBD may help reduce inflammation, and therefore treat pain. While research is limited, anecdotal evidence supports CBD as a natural back pain remedy, chronic pain treatment, and general pain reliever. Here’s a medically-reviewed article about CBD and pain relief.
- Sleep – CBD may help people get to sleep more quickly or stay asleep longer. The sleep benefits of CBD can be indirect, as an oil or edible may calm the mind, or direct, as the substance makes the user drowsy. Here’s a helpful article about CBD and sleep.
While there are many possible benefits of CBD oil, these products have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. The only FDA approved CBD drug, Epidiolex, is designed to treat a rare form of epilepsy known as Dravet Syndrome.
NOTE: Talk to a doctor about how CBD might interact with certain medications.
How Much CBD Oil Should You Take?
Opinions on how much CBD to take vary. It’s almost impossible to find any clinical guidance so we’re left to experiment. This means you should be cautious, start slow, and work your way to a dose that works for you. You should also spend some time understanding product types and labels to better measure the amount of CBD you are taking.
Understand product concentrations
Concentrations vary from 1 mg CBD per milliliter to 50 or 100 mg per milliliter.
If a bottle has 500mg of CBD and 30ml in the bottle, you can get an estimate of the number of milligrams in a milliliter. In this case about 17 mg/ml.
Other times you will see brands list the milligrams in a “serving.” Often a serving is 1 milliliter.
Take time to get your dose right
Dosing guidelines are limited. The best advice is to start low and work your way up to a dose that is right for you. One online resource suggests 1-6 mg of CBD per 10 lbs of body weight. So a 200-pound man might take 20 to 120 mg of CBD. This could be broken out through the course of a day.
Consider concentration when dosing for different conditions. Dosing for anxiety (regular, lower doses) may be very different from dosing for sleep (single, higher doses). That’s not medical advice. It’s what we hear from people who use CBD.
Dosing is the #1 question brands get. It’s the question we get most often.
